Learning Path Stones

First Words

First Words
Infants string sounds together to imitate language. Later they use these sound strings to represent things in the world (baba for bottle). As toddlers they progressively build vocabulary and begin to learn the principles of word order (red ball, not ball red).

Language Sounds

Language Sounds
Language sounds lay the foundation for both the spoken and written word. Hearing spoken language introduces babies to the patterns, sounds and rhythms of speech and provides them with a model for producing language.

The Alphabet

The Alphabet
Knowing the letters of the alphabet is one of the first steps toward learning to read and write. Introducing letters to young children helps them learn to recognize the different shapes and names - an early indicator for reading achievement.

Music

Music
From birth, children love music and even prefer it to speech. Apart from the obvious joy of music there are a number of surprising benefits to listening to music: it helps develop language, problem solving skills, memory, and physical coordination.

Fine Motor Skills

Fine Motor Skills
The development and coordination of small, refined muscle movements allow infants and toddlers to use their thumb and forefinger to grasp small objects, paint and eventually learn to write.

Gross Motor Skills

Gross Motor Skills
Gross motor development includes the ability to control large muscles, like those used for sitting up and crawling, and later, for walking, running and jumping.

Awards

• 2007 Gold Award, National Parenting Publications Awards